AuthorTopic: Something else to consider before going to law school (Read 9271 times)

I graduated top third and with honors from Tulane Law School in December and I am still unemployed. I moved to Dallas in January, but the firm I worked for during the summer laid me off (with other attorneys). I already passed the Texas bar in February but I still can't find a legal job. Currently I am working at Starbucks and at a bar to pay rent and my $2000/month student loans. I want to work at a law firm or some other legal part-time job but there is nothing available - not even contract jobs. I am going to have to start selling my personal possessions on Ebay because I am falling behind on my credit card payments and about to deplete all of my savings. Plus I have to go to a coffee shop with free WiFi to post this stuff on Ebay because I can no longer afford internet or cable. I just submitted my application to a small law firm in a town outside of Dallas that pays $40K/year with no benefits and has a 2100 billable hours/year requirement (which means I will be working for less than $15/hour when you factor in actual hours worked).

I am just posting this as a rant because I thought that graduating with honors from a tier one school would open doors, not close them. I went from working at a firm paying six figures to working at Starbucks. To law school applicants, consider the worst case scenario (i.e. unemployed) before choosing a law school (especially if you have to take out loans). Even if a law school has an average starting salary of $100K/year, the only jobs outside the big law firms pay less than $50K/year. What really sucks is that my 10 year high school reunion is coming up and I will be either unemployed or getting paid less than the high school dropouts who are plumbers. Even if I get the $40K/year job, I might have to sell my car and start using the bus (which sucks in Dallas) because I can't afford the gas and insurance.

I cannot consolidate my loans because I did them through Sallie Mae. You are not allowed to consolidate your loans if you get your loans from Sallie Mae or Freddie Mac (trust me I already tried). Plus, if you have over 80% of your loans with one lender, you cannot consolidate with another lender no matter who your original loan provider is.

Thanks for your post. I won't say you suck or call you any names, but there are a lot better jobs than working at star bucks. Someone who does well at any law school should at least be a good waiter.. A fantastic waiter can make 20 bucks an hour.

Here are some jobs in Dallas that you should be able to get (or work your way up to in 2 years) with a law degree.All annual salaries listed are the [u]25 percentile[/u] from yahoo! hot jobs

Level 1 Construction loan officer $60,274

Level 1 Investment Analyst $62,107

Convention/Event Director $72,004

Plumber 1 $32,906.

Yeah, hopefully you'll make more than a plumber. Dallas has a great job market. Maybe you should go see a career counselor at the community college or something.

I think it's good that you are warning people about this, but did you have to say you work at Starbucks? Honestly? I had a better job than that when I was a freshman in college.

It is hard to get those kind of jobs with a law degree because they know that you are only doing it for a short time. Jobs like starbucks are easier to get because they don't care if you aren't going to stay with them long term.

Not saying it is the law school's fault. But I am saying that people who are going to schools that are ranked lower than tier one should consider the possibility of being unemployed for a while and having to settle on a job they don't want.

It is hard to get those kind of jobs with a law degree because they know that you are only doing it for a short time. Jobs like starbucks are easier to get because they don't care if you aren't going to stay with them long term.

Yes, b/c nobody with a law degree ever goes into another field.

I won't be as kind as Jack though; you're a fucktard. And it would be more difficult to get a job @ SB with a law degree over the other jobs Jack listed for the exact reason that you said enabled you to get it.